Actually sci-fi is one of my most favorite genres. If not THE favorite.
And although I am a woman, I couldn't care less about the romance.
I may not be that much into tech, when it comes only as robots or spaceships (although they're quite cool, too ^^), but science in general, especially biology, medicine or chemistry. Personally I would love to see some more biological explanations of alien races and their behavior. We had quite a good amount of that in PSCD and I loved it. ^^ For example to find out about how Maradan cities are built. Or - as annoying I found her in general to be - Charlotte's idea of copying that lifestyle. I'm really digging such ideas. (No need to say that I loved Samuel-romance the most, just because of him being a xenobiologist. xD) ^^
On the other hand I can see why other women don't actually like sci-fi. And yeah... I have to agree that maybe I am an exception with my opinion.
Maybe a game would be interesting where you play as a researcher on an alien planet. Finding out about the creatures that surround you. Well... at least that's the kind of game I would buy. xD But when it comes to sci-fi and Winterwolves-Games... I actually liked how they were pulled off. You have a fan here, Jack. xD

The danger of blending genres, like sci fi and romance (or any of your other genre crossing experiments), is that you don't reach either audience. While some of us appreciate familiarity mixed with the unfamiliar (it's what I've often tried to do in my own writing), many people just want what's familiar and expected.

Maybe sci fi fans, generally speaking, are in fact the problem, wanting something very specific, and not accepting things like animé visuals, focus on romance, etc.?

Bionic Heart remains one of my personal favorite Winter Wolves games though (PSCD has taken first place, because CARD GAME!).

I spoke with Dave He said that overall his "sci-fi adventures" didn't do exceptionally well compared to his "normal" ones. As for what sci-fi fans want, it's not easy indeed. For example I play Fallout 4 mostly for combat, but I didn't find the story particularly interesting (even if there are some good ideas). While I loved Witcher3 mainly for the story So yes probably as Franka said you need to be careful with what you mix sci-fi with.

BTW a game in which you're a researcher in an alien planet it's actually an awesome idea!! I am writing this down for future use! could be mixed with RPG or sim/strategy gameplay and be very interesting indeed.

At the end of the day, I don't think it's fair to compare sci-fi realistic-art card game to an anime-styled RPG. There's too many variables. It may be the art. It may be the card vs. rpg gameplay. But it's not necessarily sci-fi sells less than fantasy. The original Loren had that really popular anime-style and was really, really well done. I love Dennis' art, but anime is huge among the RPG/VN community so you take a risk by doing something different.

As far as Heileen vs. Bionic Heart ... I'm kinda sad Heileen did so much better than Bionic Heart. I liked the original, but Heileen 2 bored me. Bionic Heart was extremely interesting in comparison -- I went out of my way to see many of the endings whereas I dont think I completed Heileen 2 more than once. Bionic Heart was riskier, crazier and I loved every second of it. Maybe you should re-attempt sci-fi with a female protagonist and incorporate romantic options into it? Nicole sold well, didn't it? I feel like dark crime mystery and sci fi aren't too far off from eachother in the sense that they often rely on intrigue/suspense and engaging plots. As It sounds like your romance games tend to do best, I really want to see what would happen if you fully embraced a sci-fi/dating-sim crossover. I know I -- personally -- am only interested in unique dating sims. I'd take Hatoful Boyfriend(Friggen hilarious), Roommates(so quirky and polished) and Nicole(Intense! At least for the first couple playthroughs) over Always Remember Me any day of the week.

I am not one to shirk responsibility; I've already acknowledged and agreed with some of the criticisms/complaints/etc. So if it is my writing...*shrugs* I do the best I can, but if it isn't up to standard, then that is my fault.

Last edited by Miakoda on Wed Feb 17, 2016 5:02 pm, edited 1 time in total.

I am not one to shirk responsibility; I've already acknowledged and agreed with some criticisms/complaints. So if it is my writing...*shrugs* I do the best I can, but if it isn't up to standard, then that is my fault.

Surely wasn't your fault, considering how well the game was received, and the fact that other writers working for me said it was the best writing (something rather unusual!).

Katicflis wrote:I'm kinda sad Heileen did so much better than Bionic Heart

Haha you tell me! I am still surprised myself about this result

Katicflis wrote: I'd take Hatoful Boyfriend(Friggen hilarious), Roommates(so quirky and polished) and Nicole(Intense! At least for the first couple playthroughs) over Always Remember Me any day of the week.

Haha and I'm doing the sequel right now though I think it's not fair to call it dating sim, since you start ALREADY married... more like "marriage/couple life simulator". I think will be an interesting experiment.

Maybe the fact that the setting is a sci-fi one impacts a bit, but I'm not sure it has such a big impact. Taking me as an example, with all the games you compared:

Bionic Heart: I've never played it and the fact that it's a male protagonist is the reason, not the setting. Since I never played the first one, I never tried the second one, obviously

Now for the games that do feature a female protagonist: while I do own Planet stronghold, Always Remember Me and Heileen, I never finished Planet Stronghold and preferred Heileen and Always Remember Me, not because I dislike the setting or anything but purely because Planet Stronghold has RPG mechanics. And while I don't deny their interest, when I buy a VN, I'm only interested in the story and don't care or like having to deal with combat mechanics at all. I always play Loren in Story Mode for exemple

I'd even go as far as wishing to be rid of the typical VN gameplay features (stats and having a route by character) because it sometimes detracts me from the story and doesn't feel natural. I'm not sure if you know about Aloners, from Sonnet 009? The fact that the game adapts to your personality and that you define who the MC is with your choices all along the story is makes it feel so much more natural, and personal. I never remember caring as much about a VN character than I did with Trash because I was invested in the story, and it was no longer about making the right choices to win the guy but about experiencing the story at his side.

As for PSCD, the reason I didn't buy it is because I don't care about the card gameplay, and while it also features a VN mode, buying a game full price when you only plan to use half of its features is something I'd ideally like to do because I know the work put behind it and you clearly deserve it, but my wallet wouldn't agree.

Edit: And I liked the fact that Aloners was for a mature audience too, I don't dislike VNs made for teenage audiences, but I'm past that! And I don't mean that I want an explicit romance, just a romance who doesn't feels less like a PG13 romcom and end with a kiss and holding hands.

Last edited by lanawinst on Wed Feb 17, 2016 5:36 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Haha interesting, fun to know what's behind the decisions of people!
Regarding PSCD, it's actually a steal even at full price since has same length of Loren+DLC (even without PSCD DLC!) but is $19.99 vs $29+ (Loren+DLC). Of course if we use the word length as a measure

jack1974 wrote:I think you might be right. Considering females are (by far) my biggest customer base, it could be a good explanation.
I'm trying to convince my wife to watch Battlestar Galactica since years, unsuccessful Some people on twitter said that it can't simply do the equation "females don't like sci-fi" because of all the ones who played mass effect. Which is true, however maybe because was famous and people got to know (like you by friends or reading online) that there was romances. I surely don't have the marketing power or word of mouth of Bioware

Only 18% of the people who finished Mass Effect 3, did it with a female Shepard, so its not that popular with the female crowd as it was with the male one.